Undergraduate English Language Requirement

All undergraduate applicants whose native language is not English, and who have not attended schools at the secondary level or above for at least three years full time where English is the principal language of instruction, must present a score of (see chart below) or above on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Some majors may require a higher score. Some majors and some CSUs may require a higher score. A few CSUs may also use alternative methods of assessing English fluency: Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) and the International Test of English Proficiency (ITEP). Each university will post the tests it accepts on its website and will notify students after they apply about the tests it accepts and when to submit scores. CSU minimum TOEFL standards are:

Cal State East Bay interprets “where English was the principal language of instruction” to mean that a school is located in a country where English is the native language (the daily medium of communication of the majority of residents is English), and that the students receive academic instruction in all subjects (except foreign language courses) at all levels of education in English. 

Cal State East Bay minimum English proficiency test standards for undergraduate students are:

• TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of  61 Internet-based or 525 Paper-based or above.
• An overall IELTS (International English Language Testing System) score of 6.0 or above.

TOEFL or IELTS can be waived for applicants who meet at least one of these two requisites:

• Transferred from a U.S. college with 60 or more semester units with a minimum grade point average of 2.4, and have completed a transfer course in each of the following general education areas with a grade of 2.0 or better: English composition, speech, critical thinking, and mathematics.
• Attended a secondary school or higher for three or more years in one or more of the following countries: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize (formerly British Honduras), Bermuda, Botswana, Canada (except Quebec), Cayman Islands, Commonwealth Caribbean, Dominica, England, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana (aka British Guiana), Ireland (Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland), Jamaica, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Micronesia, Montserrat, Namibia, New Zealand, Saint Helena, Saint Lucia (Caribbean Commonwealth), Scotland, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Trinidad & Tobago, United Kingdom, United States, Virgin Islands (US and British), Wales, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Note: All test scores must be sent directly from the testing institution. Cal State East Bay’s International Admission Office contacts are located at: http://www.csueastbay.edu/prospective/how-to-apply/international-student-admission.